Our Best Sweet Potato Recipes for Thanksgiving (2024)

FAQs

How many pounds of sweet potatoes per person for Thanksgiving? ›

For Thanksgiving, I would use slightly less than one pound of sweet potatoes per person. As a side dish to a meal, I would plan on one pound per person.

When shopping for sweet potatoes — after you've decided whether you want a soft or firm variety — you should look for ones that have a smooth, taut skin and are free of soft spots, bruises, cracks or signs of sprouting.

While both yams and sweet potatoes are root vegetables, the taste of each is entirely unique. The orange-fleshed sweet potatoes tend to be much sweeter and creamier in texture compared to yams which have a white flesh that's starchier and more similar to a white potato.

Yams and sweet potatoes differ in flavor and appearance, and they are not related. Sweet potatoes are in the morning glory family, while yams belong to the lily family. Yams aren't as sweet as sweet potatoes, and they are starchier and drier. Their texture and flavor are more similar to potatoes or yuca.

“A general guideline to estimating how many sweet potatoes you need when hosting friends or family for a meal is one medium sweet potato per person,” Burgess says, as if she's done this many times before.

Slow-roasting the sweet potatoes activates endogenous enzymes that bring out their natural sweetness.

While Beauregards may be the most common sweet potato, Jewels are right next to them in terms of being a great, classic sweet potato. They have a pretty, thin orange skin, and bright orange flesh that screams "sweet potato." (Or "yam," wrong as that may be. Shrug.)

Wrapping sweet potatoes in foil helps in a few ways. It prevents the exterior of the tuber from drying out and overheating too quickly, which would minimize enzymatic activity; it also results in a more evenly cooked texture.

Yams have a unique taste, too. Compared to sweet potatoes, yams are less sweet and much more starchy and dry. They also tend to have a good shelf life. However, certain varieties store better than others.

Though they can both be part of a healthy diet, sweet potatoes are generally healthier than regular potatoes, partly because of their incredibly high vitamin A content. Sweet potatoes are also lower on the glycemic index, meaning that they are less likely than regular potatoes to make your blood sugar spike.

Which cooks faster yam or sweet potato? ›

Their tender leaves are a good cooked vegetable, too. Sweet potatoes cook more quickly than yams, are moister, and they taste distinctly sweet.

Sweet-tasting tuberous roots of sweet potato are well-rounded nutritional powerhouses with a great deal of dietary fiber, minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants [15]. Therefore, eating raw sweet potato can effectively contribute to weight loss. However, selecting a raw sweet potato with a good flavor can be challenging.

No, yams and sweet potatoes are not the same. Yams have rough, dark brown skin that is often compared to tree bark, and their flesh is dry and starchy like a regular potato. Sweet potatoes have smooth reddish skin, softer flesh (when cooked), and a sweet flavor.

Potatoes or sweet potatoes: 5 to 6 ounces per person, which equals about 1 large Yukon Gold or white potato, or half of a large sweet potato.

Plan on 1/3 to 1/2 pound potatoes per person for your feast.

Will feed 10-12 people.

I did some research, and here's the answer: a large sweet potato is about a ½ pound. You'll want to figure on ⅓ to ½ pound per person. This Sweet Potato recipe feeds about 6, with maybe a little leftover.